Outdoors, action, adventure

For Danny Way, being injured is nearly normal

He has had 13 surgeries, including eight on his knee, along with four ACL reconstructions in the same knee.

On Thursday, he says he nearly tore his MCL in his right knee, the one that has, to this point, stayed injury-free.

And on his second attempt in the Skateboard Big Air Rail Jam, he rolled his right ankle

“I don’t know why I always have to be the guy that gets hurt,” said the 35-year-old from San Diego, who walked into the press conference on crutches with a bag of ice on his right knee.

No matter. He won the event, scoring a 92 on his one and only landed attempt, a switch 50-50. He was limping all through the day and there was speculation he might not skate.

But that speculation wasn’t shared by his teammates, including Bob Burnquist, who took silver and said he knew Way would be skating no matter what.

“I knew before he got hurt that if he got hurt – he would skate,” Burnquist said. “That’s just the way Danny rides.”

There was more significance for Way because it was the first ever Skateboard Big Air Rail Jam, and skating on a rail is one of his specialties.

Still, he said, it can get old being injured.

“Maybe that’s my place in skateboarding and my place on the planet, but it’s not what I set out to do, that’s for sure.”

--Baxter Holmes

Photo: Danny Way fell on his second attempt after landing on the quarter pipe and limped off, but got back up and kept taking runs, eventually taking the gold medal in the skateboard big air event. Credit: Ken Hively/Los Angeles Times